15 foods to help you bulk up over winter

Calorie-dense and good for you: everything you need to build a better body.

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Tuna

Extremely high in protein, ultra-cheap and proven to help you lower your risk of stroke, heart disease and cognitive disorders like Alzheimer's, tuna is an excellent addition to any bulking meal plan. Some people become concerned with the amount of mercury in canned tuna, but here in Australia almost all of the canned produce is made with albacore, a fish that's highly unlikely to have high concentrations of mercury.

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Cottage cheese

When it comes to getting protein, it can get tough chewing through endless dry chicken breasts. That is, of course, unless you start supplementing your diet with dairy products like cottage cheese. Cottage cheese is full of casein protein (the type that digests ultra-slowly) which makes it the perfect muscle-building snack at night where it can help feed your muscles as you sleep.

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Broccoli

It might seem weird to have a vegetable on a muscle-building list, but broccoli is here for a good reason. There's evidence that broccoli can help boost the testosterone levels in males, but besides that, it's an incredibly important bit of roughage in your diet - which you'll need to pass all the food you'll eat if you plan on bulking up over the winter.

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Butter

A great source of saturated fats and an excellent way to increase your calorie surplus, butter is excellent for those who just can't gain weight no matter what they eat. If you gain muscle easily, it might be wise for your cholesterol levels to take it easy on the butter, or at least opt for a low-sodium variety.

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Steak

When infamous UFC fighter Conor McGregor needed to put on muscle to move up a weight class, he famously said that he's started eating steaks for breakfast. There's actually something in his reasoning: steak is extremely high in protein, and extremely high in amino acids, which helps your muscle tissues repair themselves more efficiently (and therefore grow bigger).

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Oatmeal

If you took a poll of bodybuilders worldwide and asked them what they had for breakfast, you'd find one answer that dominates the rest: oatmeal. Why you ask? Simple really - not only are oats an incredibly nutritious carbohydrate that gives you energy all day, they're also packed full of fibre, are cheap to buy and can be mixed with protein powder for the ultimate muscle-building breakfast.

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Brown rice

If you're doing any kind of meal prep, you'd likely come across brown rice. Brown rice is preferred over white rice because it's slightly less processed, and therefore is unlikely to make your insulin levels spike too high, which can ruin the conditions inside your body required to build muscle effectively. If you need to bulk up your meals around the meats and vegetables, brown rice is an excellent carbohydrate source.

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Asparagus

Another odd entrant in a muscle-building list, but asparagus can play an incredibly important role in how your muscles "look". As you may know, asparagus is a natural diuretic which means that consuming large amounts helps your body to "flush" any excessive water you're holding. Many bodybuilders will eat lots of asparagus before a contest to give them that "dry" look.

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Psyllium husk

Anytime you're planning on eating a lot more food than you normally would, it's a wise idea to also bulk up on the amount of fibre you consume. This is because the more food you eat also correlates to the amount of time you spend on the toilet. You may as well make it a pleasant experience by nibbling on psyllium husk - it's incredibly high in fibre and is essentially what laxative supplements like Metamucil are made from.

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Almond milk

If you're lactose intolerant, it's tough to miss out on the glorious bulking drink that is cow's milk. But there's an alternative, and while almond milk doesn't have quite the same protein profile, it's perfect for mixing in with your protein shakes. Many people find they don't suffer from the same levels of bloating after drinking almond milk compared to cow's milk.

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Olive oil

If it's sheer calories you're after, you can't go past a good, healthy source of fats like olive oil. Because olive oil is just so damn full of fat, it's extremely calorie dense - meaning a little drizzle here and there can mean the difference of almost 300 calories. If you find it hard to gain weight no matter what you eat, it's time to embrace the oil.

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Eggs and avocado

From every brunch menu in the country comes one of the best snacks for people looking to put on muscle: eggs and avocado. The eggs are extremely high in protein, helping you repair after a tough session in the gym, whilst the avocado is high in saturated fats, which will help your joints repair themselves after a particularly heavy session.

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Peanut butter

If you want to add an extra calorie bang to your protein shakes but don't want to fill them up with sugar, try adding a teaspoon of peanut butter. Because peanuts are incredibly calorie-dense, the butter they make is also very fattening - in a good way. Peanut butter with a banana on toast is one of the best pre-workout meals you can have, and even better - it's delicious.

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Protein powder

Let's make no qualms about it - protein powder is a type of food. Contrary to what you heard from your neighbours or that guy in the gym, protein powder is simply made from whey, which is a byproduct used in the production of cheese. Because it's powdered, it's extremely convenient to whip up a post-workout meal and drink it rather than having to cook.